10 Best HRIS Software for HR Managers

If you work in HR, you know the drill: chasing down forms, repeatedly answering the same questions about pay stubs, and triple-checking spreadsheets before every payroll run. It’s a lot — and while this work matters, it often leaves less time for big-picture priorities like supporting managers or shaping culture. 

The best HRIS software is designed to take that weight off your shoulders by automating routine tasks, keeping important details in one place, and helping you feel confident that you’re covered in terms of accuracy and compliance. 

In this article, we’ll walk through what an HRIS actually does, the key features to look for, and some of the best options out there so you can find the right fit for your team.  

What is HRIS software? 

HRIS (Human Resources Information System) software is the central hub for your people- data and day-to-day HR work. A modern HRIS connects core areas, like employee profiles, payroll sync, time and PTO tracking, benefits enrollment, and routine approvals, so information flows cleanly instead of getting stuck in email chains or spreadsheets. 

Because everything runs through a single system, you get faster processes, fewer errors, and built-in checks that make compliance a lot less nerve-wracking. Unlike HRMS or HCM software, which tend to cover broader, enterprise-wide talent and workforce needs, HRIS tools are focused on keeping the day-to-day HR engine running smoothly and accurately. 

Best HRIS software of 2026

Here’s a quick snapshot of some of the best HRIS software options for HR teams today, so you can see how they stack up, side by side.  

These solutions are not listed in any particular order — use the table to compare features, pricing, and fit for your organization. 

Best for: All-in-one HR, Finance and IT platform that automates workflows and accelerates organizational performance across every department. 

When HR, Finance, and IT are all separate systems, simple tasks — like onboarding a new hire, processing a pay change, issuing expense cards, or getting a laptop and system access approved — start to feel complex.  

Paylocity brings those teams together on one modern platform built around a single employee data core, embedding AI thoughtfully across your workflows to deliver intelligent automation, tailored insights, and proactive assistance. This allows you to automate HR, payroll, time, and expense workflows, rather than stitching them together by hand.  

The result is less time spent on manual data entry, faster onboarding and approvals, and clearer visibility into how decisions about your people affect budgets, productivity, and long-term growth. 

Paylocity is a good fit for organizations that want a single place to run day-to-day people operations without losing sight of culture and employee experience.  

It gives HR teams the automation and analytics they need to work smarter, while employees get an easy, mobile-friendly way to handle the basics — viewing pay, updating info, submitting expenses, and requesting time off — on their own schedule. 

Key Features:  

• AI embedded across the platform: Leverage AI across recruiting, performance management, and day-to-day admin tasks to surface candidate matches, flag potential compliance gaps, and generate first-draft job descriptions or review summaries — giving HR teams a head start on work that used to take hours. 
• Prebuilt and configurable workflows: Automate everyday workflows (like onboarding, job and pay changes, and approvals) with templates you can turn on quickly, then tweak to match your policies and stakeholders. 
• Workforce analytics and compliance tracking: Tap into dashboards, reports, and AI-driven insights to keep an eye on headcount, labor costs, turnover, and key compliance indicators in real time, so you can surface trends early and step in before they become bigger issues. 
• IT access and asset management: Provision software accounts, assign hardware, and track company devices directly in the HRIS, so IT and HR can coordinate onboarding and offboarding without jumping between systems or losing track of who has what. 
• Employee experience tools that drive productivity and culture: Go beyond basic self-service with social feeds, peer recognition, surveys, and two-way communication tools that help you share updates, gather feedback, and keep people connected — especially in hybrid or distributed teams. 
• Built-in expense management tied to payroll: Capture, approve, and reimburse expenses in the same system you use to run payroll, so out-of-pocket spend gets routed, reviewed, and paid back quickly (with fewer spreadsheets and cleaner reporting for Finance). 

Pricing: Custom

2. BambooHR

Best for: Simplified onboarding for HR admins 

For lean HR teams that want to standardize new-hire workflows BambooHR - Onboarding and keep employee data in one place, BambooHR can be a big step up from manual processes. It focuses on core HR, time off, onboarding, and performance, with optional modules for payroll and benefits, all wrapped in a clean and easy-to-learn interface.  

As teams grow more complex, though, some users find that BambooHR’s feature depth and customization options don’t always keep pace — especially if they need highly tailored workflows, advanced reporting, or niche integrations.  

It’s a strong fit for organizations that value simplicity and quick adoption; just know that as you scale, you may eventually need to layer on additional tools or consider a more robust system to support more advanced requirements. 

Key Features: 

• Employee satisfaction and wellbeing surveys: BambooHR includes Employee Satisfaction surveys based on eNPS to track loyalty over time, along with Employee Wellbeing surveys that dig into areas like happiness, relationships, and motivators.  
• AI-powered feedback insights: With AI Topic Summaries for eNPS, BambooHR automatically analyzes open-text survey responses and groups them into themes, so you can see what’s driving scores without reading every single comment.  
• Employee experience tools for engagement: Beyond basic self-service, BambooHR offers an employee experience suite that supports wellness, rewards, feedback, and recognition in one place. These tools are designed to boost connection and satisfaction by making it easier to gather feedback, celebrate wins, and keep a pulse on culture directly inside the HR platform. 

Pricing: Plans start at $10/mo/employee BambooHR - Pricing

3. Rippling

Best for: HR-IT automation 

Rippling is a workforce platform built around automation — especially for tasks that sit between HR and IT. It’s a strong fit for remote and hybrid teams that are constantly spinning up laptops, logins, and permissions for new hires, role changes, and departures.  

Instead of handling each request as a one-off ticket, admins can lean on clear, reusable workflows to take more of that work off their plate. 

Compared to more traditional HRIS tools, Rippling leans into device security, identity management, and access controls alongside standard people operations.  

While this can be a big win for lean IT teams, some reviews note that the platform’s depth can feel like overkill for smaller organizations with simple HR needs.Forbes - Rippling Review They also say that pricing can climb as you add modules.Rivermate - Rippling Pricing 

Key Features:  

• Cross-OS device management: Rippling’s mobile device management lets admins manage Mac, Windows, iOS, and iPadOS devices from a single dashboard, with tools for zero-touch deployment, OS patching, encryption, and remote lock or wipe.  
• Identity, app, access automation: Rippling’s identity and access management gives you one place to set up, adjust, and disable accounts across hundreds of apps, with SSO, MFA, and role-based permissions. You can base access rules on attributes like role, department, or location, so changes to someone’s job can automatically update what they can see and use. 
• Automated onboarding and provisioning: User provisioning in Rippling is designed as a “set it and forget it” process: when you hire someone, the system follows your rules to create accounts, assign groups, and grant access to the right tools — and automatically removes that access when they leave.  

Pricing: Custom Rippling - Pricing

4. Workday

Best for: Enterprise workforce planning 

If you’re running HR at a large, complex organization, you’ve probably heard of Workday. It’s an enterprise HCM platform built for companies that need to plan, manage, and analyze their workforce at scale, often across multiple countries and business units.  

Workday leans heavily on AI, branded as Workday Illuminate, to speed up routine work, surface insights, and help leaders model “what if” scenarios around headcount, skills, and budgets on a single platform. 

In practice, that makes Workday a better fit for organizations that think in terms of multi-year workforce plans and complex financial models than for teams that just want a straightforward HRIS. 

Reviews consistently praise its depth and analytics, but also call out high costs Workday Negotiations - Workday Pricing Benchmarks and Market Rates for Enterprises, longer implementations APTY - 10 Common Workday Implementation Challenges for 2025, and a steep learning curve Working Day - Workday Review, especially for smaller teams or those with simpler needs. 

Key Features:  

• AI-powered HCM platform: Workday bakes AI into core HCM, using Illuminate to automate tasks, flag anomalies, and generate recommendations across HR and finance workflows.  
• Unified HR and finance: HR and finance run on the same platform and data model, so people and money are tied together. That makes it easier to see the impact of headcount changes, model different scenarios, and keep HR and finance leaders working from the same numbers (instead of stitching together reports from separate systems). 
• Employee experience capabilities: Workday offers employee experience tools, like Workday Journeys and employee voice/engagement capabilities, that guide employees through “moments that matter” (onboarding, role changes, leave, open enrollment). They offer personalized steps and content, while ongoing pulse surveys help HR keep a steady read on sentiment and engagement. 

Pricing: Custom Workday - Pricing

5. Gusto

Best for: Startups 

Gusto is an online payroll and HR platform built primarily for startups and small businesses that want to get people paid reliably without becoming payroll experts.  

It offers tools for pay runs, benefits, basic HR, and compliance in a straightforward, easy-to-learn interface, which makes it especially appealing to young companies that don’t have a full HR team or tech stack in place yet. 

Most teams use Gusto as a payroll-first system that also covers essentials like onboarding, time off, and employee self-service. At the same time, third-party reviews often note that its non-payroll HR features are relatively light and that pricing has increased over time.Business - Gusto Payroll Review

As companies grow and need deeper HR capabilities or tighter budget control, they may eventually want to look at more robust HRIS options. 

Key Features:  

• Unlimited payroll runs: Gusto lets you run payroll as often as you need — regular cycles, bonuses, or off-cycle corrections — without charging extra per run. That’s helpful for startups that change salaries, bonuses, or contractor payments frequently as they grow. 
• Automated tax filing: Every time you run payroll, Gusto automatically calculates, files, and pays federal, state, and local payroll taxes, and it also generates and files W-2s and 1099s at year-end. This takes a big chunk of compliance work off a founder or lean HR/finance team’s plate. 
• Syncs time with payroll: With built-in time tracking in Plus and Premium plans — and integrations to third-party time tools — hours worked can flow straight into payroll so you’re not re-entering timesheets by hand.  

Pricing: Plans start at $49/mo Gusto - Pricing

6. SAP SuccessFactors

Best for: Global talent suite 

Managing HR across multiple countries, business units, and job structures can get complicated fast. SAP SuccessFactors is built with that world in mind. It gives mid-sized and large organizations a central place to manage global employee data, org structures, and HR processes while still supporting local rules and requirements.  

At its core is Employee Central, a flexible HRIS that acts as the system of record for global companies and helps automate routine HR tasks. 

From there, organizations can add talent, learning, analytics, and workforce planning modules to create a full talent suite. It’s a strong fit for organizations willing to invest in a more powerful system and partner-led implementation, rather than teams looking for something lightweight and out-of-the-box.Gartner - SAP SuccessFactors Reviews and Ratings

Key Features:  

• Employee Central core HRIS: Employee Central goes beyond basic record-keeping by giving you tools to manage positions, org structures, and open roles in a more organized way. It also folds in time off and global benefits, so things like local absence rules, approvals, and dependent details live in one place. 
• Talent management and learning: The talent suite covers the full people cycle: recruiting and onboarding, performance and goals, compensation reviews, succession planning, and learning. This helps spot skill gaps, grow people from within, and keep leadership pipelines healthy. 
• HR analytics and planning: Workforce analytics and planning tools pull HR and business data into one view, so you can answer questions about headcount, turnover, and skills without manual number-crunching.

Pricing: Plans start at $6.30/mo/user SAP SuccessFactors - Pricing

7. Namely

Best for: Midsize people ops 

Namely is an HR and payroll platform for small and mid-sized businesses with teams that have outgrown basic tools but don’t need heavyweight enterprise software.   

It gives people ops teams one place to handle everyday HR work — things like employee records, payroll, benefits, time off, and performance — while giving employees a modern, self-service experience. 

It’s a solid fit for midsize organizations that care as much about communication and culture as they do about clean data and compliance.

Reviews often highlight its employee-friendly design and engagement features, while also noting that very complex orgs may eventually run into limitations with reporting, integrations, or support.GetApp - Namely - 2025 Pricing, Features, Reviews, & Alternatives

Key Features:  

• Social, feed-based employee hub: Namely includes a built-in, social media-style news feed where teams can share announcements, celebrate birthdays and work anniversaries, and give kudos, with options to tie it into tools like Slack.  
• Compliance tools plus expert guidance: Beyond standard HR checklists, Namely offers compliance features (handbook support, legal updates, training, OSHA and other required reports) and “HR Comply Advice & Action,” which pairs software with access to HR and compliance experts.  
• Benefits brokerage and managed services: Namely doesn’t just administer benefits — it also offers its own brokerage and managed benefits services, giving clients access to experienced consultants, plus the tech to run enrollment and ongoing changes. HR, payroll, and benefits teams can also tap into managed HR and payroll services for extra hands-on support. 

Pricing: Plans start at $9/mo/user Namely - Pricing

8. UKG Pro

Best for: Workforce management 

For organizations that live and breathe schedules — like healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and other 24/7 operations — UKG Pro is built to keep day-to-day workforce management under control. It’s a cloud HCM platform with a heavy emphasis on scheduling, time and attendance, and labor compliance, while using AI and workforce data to forecast staffing needs and stay ahead of overtime, meal breaks, and local labor rules. 

UKG Pro tends to make the most sense for mid-sized and large organizations with complex, often hourly workforces, rather than companies that just need straightforward HR and payroll.  

Reviews frequently highlight its workforce management and compliance capabilities as key strengths, while also pointing out that pricing sits on the higher end. They also say that implementations can be more involved, especially for global or highly distributed teams.TechRaisal - UKG Pro: Features, Reviews, and Complete Guide for Business 

Key Features: 

• AI-powered forecasting and scheduling: UKG Pro Forecasting uses UKG Bryte AI to analyze your own business data — like sales, seasonality, and holidays — to predict staffing needs and suggest the right mix of people for each shift. 
• Built-in attestation for compliance: Attestation prompts employees to answer quick questions about things like symptoms or meal and rest breaks right at punch-in. It then feeds those responses into configurable workflows and reports so you can track issues, prove compliance, and spot trends early. 
• Workforce-focused analytics: UKG’s analytics tools tap into a large workforce dataset and people-first AI to surface patterns around staffing, overtime, and risk, then turn those into practical recommendations so leaders can adjust schedules, headcount, and policies with data instead of guesswork. 

Pricing: Custom Outsail - A Comprehensive Look at UKG's Pricing

9. ADP Workforce Now

Best for: Industries requiring strict compliance 

ADP Workforce Now is a payroll-centered HR platform often used by small to mid-sized — and increasingly larger — organizations in highly regulated industries, like healthcare, retail, and financial services.  

Its strengths are payroll accuracy and compliance: continuous calculations, automated tax filing in all 50 states, and add-ons like SmartCompliance for ACA, wage and tax, and other post-payroll requirements. 

ADP stands out for that deep payroll and compliance engine and the surrounding service model, rather than a lighter, “self-serve” HR experience.  

Third-party reviews, however, frequently mention tradeoffs: a steeper learning curve, an interface that can feel dated, inconsistent support G2 - ADP Workforce Now, and higher, quote-based pricing that can climb as you add modules or expand internationally.People Managing People - ADP Workforce Now Pricing Tiers & Costs

Key Features:  

• SmartCompliance for complex payroll rules: ADP SmartCompliance handles employment tax, garnishments, ACA, unemployment, I-9/E-Verify, and tax credits as an added compliance layer with specialists monitoring rule changes. 
• DataCloud benchmarking at massive scale: ADP DataCloud lets you compare your pay, turnover, and workforce metrics against anonymized data from millions of employees across thousands of employers. 
• Global payroll in 140+ countries: ADP’s global payroll solutions (Celergo and GlobalView) support running payroll in 140+ countries with centralized oversight and local compliance support, making it a good option for multinationals with distributed teams.ADP – Global Payroll

Pricing: Custom ADP Workforce Now - Compare Options

10. Deel

Best for: Remote-first teams hiring globally 

Hiring in multiple countries usually means wrestling with local entities, unfamiliar labor laws, and messy contractor setups. Deel is built to smooth that out. It lets you hire full-time employees through its employer-of-record (EOR) network, manage contractors, and run multi-currency payroll across 130+ countries Deel - Global Payroll Services, while keeping contracts and core HR details in one system. 

It tends to be a strong fit for remote-first startups and scaling teams where global hiring and compliance are the main headaches, not day-to-day HR admin in a single country.  

Reviewers often call out Deel’s clean interface and broad international coverage, but also note that EOR and global payroll pricing can be higher than domestic-only tools and that how “deep” the product goes can vary from country to country.People Managing People - Deel Pricing Guide 2025: Tiers, Costs, & Value

Key Features:  

• Global EOR network in 150+ countries: Deel acts as the legal employer for your team in 150+ countries Deel – Hire Employees Globally, so you can hire full-time employees without opening local entities while Deel handles contracts, payroll, taxes, and local labor-law compliance behind the scenes. 
• Deep contractor management with localized compliance: Beyond basic vendor payments, Deel generates localized contractor agreements, automates tax forms like W-8BEN/W-9, and pays contractors in 120+ currencies with transparent, compliant payouts.Deel - Contractor Management System (CMS)
• Immigration, visas, and equipment support: Deel can help with global mobility by supporting visas and immigration in many markets. And since acquiring Hofy, the platform can also coordinate remote equipment and office gear for new hires, tying hardware and location logistics directly into the hiring workflow. 

Pricing: Individual pricing per service Deel - How Much Does Deel Cost?

Features to look for in the best HRIS software 

Once you’ve got a short list of vendors, the next step is figuring out which system will actually make life easier for you and your team. As you compare options, look for features that keep your data in one place, cut down on busywork, and support the culture you’re trying to build. 

Payroll 

In an ideal world, payroll runs quietly in the background — and a strong HRIS helps you get closer to that. When payroll is built into your HRIS, it can pull in hours, pay rates, deductions, and tax details automatically, so you’re not keying the same information into multiple systems.

That means more accurate paychecks, fewer last-minute fixes, and better confidence that you’re staying compliant with federal, state, and local rules. 

Core HR 

Core HR is where you manage the basics: employee records, job and pay details, org structure, policies, and key documents.  

A good system makes it easy to find what you need quickly, automate routine workflows (like address changes or title updates), and keep everything clean and consistent as people join, move, and grow in the organization. 

Audits and reporting 

HR teams get asked for data, like headcount, turnover, and overtime, all the time. A strong HRIS should make those answers easy to find with out-of-the-box reports and simple tools to build your own, plus audit trails that show who changed what and when.  

That way, you’re ready for leadership questions, board decks, and surprise audits without digging through old emails or spreadsheets. 

Security and compliance 

HR data is some of the most sensitive information a company holds, so security can’t be an afterthought. The best HRIS software includes role-based permissions, strong access controls, and data encryption, along with tools to support key compliance needs, like audit logs, retention rules, and region-specific regulations.  

The goal is to keep your data safe, your processes consistent, and your team confident that the system is doing its part to protect employees and the business. 

Benefits administration 

Benefits are important to employees — and often a headache for HR. With the right HRIS, you can manage enrollments, track eligibility, and handle life events in a single system, then send clean data to your carriers.  

Employees get a clearer view of their choices, and you spend less time fixing file errors or answering the same questions on repeat. 

Employee time tracking and scheduling 

If you have hourly or shift-based employees, time tracking and scheduling are big pieces of the puzzle. Look for HRIS tools that let employees clock in and out, track breaks, and request PTO, while managers can build and adjust schedules without starting from scratch every week.  

When those hours and schedules flow directly into payroll, you cut down on manual entry and the back-and-forth over missing or incorrect time. 

Document management 

From offer letters and I-9s to policies and performance reviews, HR runs on documents. Look for an HRIS that lets you store, organize, and search all of that in one place, with e-signatures and clear version control.  

When documents live alongside employee records and workflows, you spend less time chasing attachments and more time making sure people have what they need. 

Talent management 

A modern HRIS should support people beyond day one. Talent tools help you post jobs, track candidates, onboard new hires, and manage performance and development in the same system.  

That gives you better visibility into your pipeline and makes it easier for managers to give feedback, set goals, and support growth. 

HR analytics 

HR analytics within your HRIS can give you ready-made reports on headcount, turnover, overtime, and more — plus the ability to slice and dice data when leadership asks tougher questions.  

When your information is accurate and up to date, you can move from gut feel to data-backed decisions without spending hours exporting spreadsheets. 

Employee experience tools 

The best HRIS software also helps people feel more connected. Features like surveys, recognition, social feeds, and feedback tools give employees an easy way to share their voice and celebrate wins.  

When these tools sit alongside everyday tasks like time, pay, and benefits, engagement becomes part of daily work — not a once-a-year initiative.